The Atlanta constitution. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1885-19??, 1887-11-15

barren Of verdue as a Georgia cotton field in
November. After the early settlers OF Ohio
had exhausted the virgin soil by constant
cropping, shallow cultivation and failure to
return anything TO the soil las Georgia farmers
are doing, their successors found that it was
necessary to do something to restore the fer
tility OF the land or abandon their
occupation. Many fields had been
turned ont as Improbable for cultivation
These fields grew up in grass and weeds, and
as the country settled up they were taken in
and found to have in large degree recovered
their fertility. This naturally suggested the
idea OF glassing lands, but as the grass grew
thinly and slowly upon the land when turned
out, an effort was made to stimulate the
growth by cultivation. After many expert
ments and failures it was found that deep
ploWing. careful preparation Of the ground,
heavy fertilization of the ground and mix
ture OF clover with the grass produce the best
results. With good crops OF grass came good
stock, which was found to be more profitable
than exclusive grain raising, because it re-
turned to the land all the more valuable fer
tilizing material and did not require so
much hard labor. 1t was also found
that the blowing Of grass under gave new
strength and fertility to the soil that no
amount Of commercial fertilizers could do All
this was not found out and accomplished in q
day Or year. 1t took years of patient expe-
riment and there were then as many agricult-
ural cloakers and doubling Thomases in Ohio
as there are in Georgia now. Nor is it play to
raise grass in Ohio today, as 1 shall proceed to
show.
When it is desired to put field down in
grass, the ground IS deeply broken up with a
two-horse pillow in the fall after which a har-
row is run over it one or more times until the
soil is thoroughly pulycrzed and leveled, the
roller sometimes following the harrow, and
the harrow the roller The seed is sown later
on, sometimes in the late fall and sometime
the ground by the rains or
melting snow. In the spring, after the frost
is out of the ground, the ground is again lev
eled and packed down by passing over it a
heavy roller If the season is favorable, a
good stand is the result, and it is allowed to
grow through the summer and i'll the fall is
pastured. Next summer the grass is mown
and made into hay, and after the rains have
started it on a second growth it is again pas
tured If it be pure clover the next summer
1T is again mown for hay, and a second
and shorter crop follows, which is allowed to
ripeni Is cut put i'll the barn, and in the Win
ter the seed is threshed out. Glover seed is n
valuable crop, the market price ranging from
50 to IS per bushel / know of one county in
Ohio which in one season shipped out 100000
worth of Glover seed. The next year the sec
and crop is Plowed under and wheat
sown upon it, or it is allowed to
lay until the next spring, when it
Is cross-plowed and corn planted upon it.
This is the record of successful stand from
the first but such success is the exception
rather than the rule, for it often requires three
ing and thawing March destroys the entire
crop by spewing the roots out of the ground,
when they are frozen. Sometimes only half
stand is got. and then the bare and thin spots
must be sown over again. Had the Ohio
farmers been as easily discouraged as some of
our Georgia farmers, they would long ago
have asserted that grass could not be
grown in Ohio. and their fields would
today have been as bare as ours
Now. let US see what the Ohio farmer real
ICES for all his troubles, The Ohio agricul-
tural report gives an average of only little
over one ton of hay per acre, and the aver
age price OF this is under $40 per ton. While
TO the acre from our oat fields without turning
a furrow or sowing a seed and the average
price is $50 ton
Where, then, " think hear you ask, sis
the profit in your beautiful green grass and
sweet scented hay? 2"
That question l viii try to answer III my
next letter. w. l.. CiLESSNER.